Teenagers Earn Top-10 Starts at Darlington

By HendrickMotorsports.com

Teenagers Earn Top-10 Starts at Darlington

DARLINGTON, S.C. (Aug. 29, 2003) – Darlington Raceway is known for being a tough track to navigate, but Hendrick Motorsports’ pair of teenage drivers faired well during Friday afternoon’s NASCAR Busch Series qualifying session.
For the ninth consecutive week, Brian Vickers, driver of the No. 5 GMAC Financial Services Chevrolet, qualified in the top 10 during time trials, earning a fourth-place starting position for Saturday’s Winn-Dixie 200.
Piloting the No. 87 ditech.com Chevrolet in just his third career Busch Series start, Kyle Busch posted a lap of 165.911 mph, good enough for an eighth-place start.
“I think I made a mistake and left something on the table during our lap,” Vickers said. “You have to run on the ragged edge and one little bobble can cost you an tenth (of a second) and today it did.”
With the exception of the May 23 ARCA Series event at Lowe’s Motor Speedway where time trials were rained out, Busch has earned a top-10 starting position in each of his races since joining Hendrick Motorsports in February.
In ARCA competition, he has qualified first, fourth, second and first at Nashville, Kentucky, Michigan and Pocono, respectively. In the Busch Series, the 18-year-old has started fifth at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and fourth at IRP.
“I’m happy with the effort,” Busch said. “I could’ve pushed the car just a little harder, but I didn’t want to jeopardize brushing the wall like some of the other drivers did.”
NASCAR Winston Cup Series regular Kevin Harvick captured the pole for Saturday’s event, posting a speed of 167.516 mph.
The Winn-Dixie 200 is scheduled for a 2 p.m. ET start and will be broadcast live on NBC and MRN Radio.